Halliburton beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line (HAL) 31.64 : Reports Q1 (Mar) earnings of $0.28 per share, excluding $0.05 charge from the Venezuelan devaluation, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.25; revenues fell 3.7% year/year to $3.76 bln vs the $3.76 bln consensus. "Led by the strengthening North America market, total revenue increased 2% and operating income increased 5% during the quarter. Revenue in North America increased by 19% during the quarter while operating income more than doubled. United States land activity increased as oil and natural gas operators continued to develop unconventional reservoirs and strong oil prices encouraged an increase in oil-directed drilling activity. The 21% increase in rig count and underlying increase in service intensity during the quarter led to significant absorption of the industry's excess service capacity, which resulted in opportunities for pricing improvement. "Natural gas fundamentals in North America remain a risk to continued rig count growth in the near term; however, operator hedging positions, the need to drill to hold acreage, and the shift to liquids-rich reservoirs should moderate possible activity declines and may result in a range-bound rig count for a period of time. We believe a sustainable recovery will only occur with an increase in natural gas demand... Tangible indications are that, barring any major economic disruption, the industry is likely to experience a steady resurgence in international activity in the second half of the year and into 2011."
Your World Is As BIG as You Make It!!!
AI
